I am terrified to write my personal statement. I have had a very difficult life, most of which my friends, professors and even my own boyfriend don't really know the details of. Both of my LOR writers asked to read a draft of my PS, but I have not even written one sentence of it yet. I just don't know what of my life drama to include.

What do you think would be interesting to write about? I just don't want it to come across as a list of reasons why to pity me. But I have also worked very, very hard to get where I am.

The Bad

Being bi-racial (Ojibwe & White) (normal)Parents divorced (normal)Grew up incredibly poor (Like, hey, sometimes we don't have running water, kind-of poor)Almost failed out of college because I was suffering from anxiety & my mom's house was foreclosed upon my Freshman year

But then there are positives as well:

I've done two rounds of AmeriCorps Citizen-Scholar program, volunteering ~700 hours in the past two yearsI have a lot of work experience, including work as a Historical Interpreter at a Living History museum. In costume...Haha..Congressional Intern...and a whole bunch more of weird experiences.Very involved in the American Indian community

1) no need to be terrified. i'm sure once you write out a draft, it won't be too bad.

2) from your list, it definitely sounds like you have pretty good content to work w/

3) my suggestion is that you use as much of the Bad and the Good to compose a PS that links as much as possible. how your background as Ojibwe + white, w/ divorced parents, being poor influenced you in ways so that you wished to volunteer w/ AmeriCorps, working as a historical interpreter (might not need to include the costume part =P, and as a congressional intern.

give it a go. stuff like this might feel hard to start but once you commit to it. it's too bad.

I should have clarified, it isn't the writing part that scares me. I am confident in my ability to write a great PS. I am terrified of letting this information out into the open. I kind of come across as a rich/upper middle class kid, because I have all the things that my peers have. I take my cute little Mac out of my North Face backpack. I carry a designer purse and have a fancy phone. But all those things aren't because my mommy and daddy bought them for me. I bought them for myself, with my hard earned dollars.

Writing my PS is akin to taking the veneer off my self-image. Hence the fear.

It might be worth alluding to the fact that you generally repress or try to hide the information (Not blatantly), that way the adcomms can see that you are being candid with them and letting them know who you are. You said you are a good writer and you have interesting stories to tell, so you should be fine, maybe it could even be a little cathartic to write?

Also, with the bad stuff, be real with it. So many people are looking for pity or placing blame on other people/things with their ps's, let them know that you overcame it through hard work and whatever else it took.